Veterans Train to Protect U.S. Citizens on Home Soil

Veterans trained once again to serve, at an “About-Face Veterans Action Camp” that was held over Memorial Day Weekend, in preparation for protecting U.S. citizens on home soil. The training focused on four distinct tracts.

Strategy and Action Planning

Artistic and Creative Action

Blockades and Taking Space

Community Defense

“For five days surrounding Memorial Day, veterans from all over the country converged in Tennessee for the ‘About-Face Action Camp,’ which teaches veterans Nonviolent Direct Action, so they can better serve people’s movements, like those defending against Big Oil pipelines, or ICE raids, or white supremacist groups emboldened by Trump. The training was organized by ‘Iraq Veterans Against the War’ or IVAW. They’re a grassroots peace organization made up of veterans and current servicemembers calling for, among other things, an end to our endless wars and militarism. In this segment, correspondent John F. O’Donnell joins Lee Camp at the desk to discuss the implications of US soldiers actively rejecting war.” ~ Redacted Tonight

“…In North Dakota, veterans found new use for old skills: knowledge of scouting, rapid-response evacuation plans, and security patrols, experience as medics and with secure communications. Taken out of a militarized context, veterans found, these skills can be crucial for nonviolent resistance, especially now, as the U.S. becomes an increasingly militarized society. Nonviolent protests are routinely met with riot police wearing body armor and wielding tear gas; heavily-armed immigration agents force their way into homes to drag out family members. And under Trump, these expressions of militarism − the Muslim ban, the border wall, the refugee crisis, and the daily reality of police violence − are an increasingly common part of everyday life for millions of people in America…” ~ Other98 Team

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About The Author

JoAnn Chateau likes progressive politics and loves the canines. She writes fiction about an alpha Bichon named Chester, and his friends--with a dash of humor and a dab of poli-sci. JoAnn worked professionally in the Psychology and Information Science fields. Retired now, she enjoys the creative life.